Farm-gate



(N Mom.) 2 sheets-sheen 1.v

vW. E. NEWTON.

FARM GATE.

No. 585,224. Y APatent d J n n u n- D n i, "f 29,1 Lw' 'Il i JE 114:mams Pneus co.' PNoTaLn'uo.. wAsumcn-DN. u. t

2 Sheets-*Sheet 2.

v(No Model.)

W. E. NEWTON.

-PARM GATE.

Patented June 29.1897.

mz owms PETERS co., Fumo-nwo.. WASHINGTON, n.;

UNITED STATES PATENT @Erica WILLIS E. NEIVTON, OF NEVBURG, IOWA.

FARM-GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 585,224, dated June 29,1897'. Application ned rebrwy 15,1896'. serai No. 579,372. (No modem T0all 'wh/0771, t Duty concern:

Be it known thatI, IVILLIS E. NEWTON, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of lNewburg, in the county of Jasper and State ofIowa,have invented a new and useful Farm- Gate, of which the followingis a specilication.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved gate and improvedmeans for sliding said gate longitudinally and guiding and supportingsaid gate during its movements.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combinationof elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claim, andillustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is aperspective showing my gate in an open position and mea-ns whereby thesame may be operated. Fig. 2 is a planof the mechanismwhereby the gateis operated by engagement of a vehicle. Fig. 3 is a detail elevationofthe spring mechanism for relieving the shock occasioned by the suddenoperation of the gate.. Fig. 4 is a view illustrating a clutch mechanismemployed in the operating mechanism.

In the construction of the device, as shown, the numerals 11 designatesupporting-posts and limit and determine the degree of travel of thegate. The posts l0 11 are connected at their upper ends by a rider 12,and ou one side of said rider is mounted a track 13, preferably made ofmetal and laterally removed a short distance from the face of saidrider. Hangers 14 15 are provided and carry on their upper ends groovedrollers 16,17, which rollers rest and travel upon the upper edge of thetrack 13. The lower end portions of the hangers 14 15 are connected tothe upper ends of stiles 17 18, forming the ends of the gate. The lowerends of the stiles 17 18 are connected by parallel bars 19, separated aslight distance and forming the lower edge of the gate. A center post orstile 2O is situated midway between the stiles 17 18 and is connected atits lower end to the central portion of the bars 19 and secured to theend portions of said bars by braces 21 22, extending from said endportions to points of attachment to the stile near its upper end,l thusforming a truss to support the central portion of the gate. Bars 23 arehorizontally placed in parallel oscillation therein.

planes and are connected to the stiles and braces to form the middle andupper portion of the gate.

Posts 24 25 are provided and located at the opposite side of the roadwayor passage from the post 10 and on opposite sides of the gate. The post25 is employed to receive and support the ends of the wires or boardsforming the fence at that side of the roadway. The upper end portions ofthe posts 24 25 are bifurcated, and levers 31 are mounted for The endportions of the levers 30 31 adjacent to the gate are confined withinthe bifurcations of the posts 24 25 and move vertically therein when thelevers 30 31 are oscillated. The extreme inner end portions of thelevers 30 31 extend almost to the spacethrough which the posts 17 18 ofthe gate travel, and connecting-rods 32 33 are hinged thereto and dependtherefrom. A slot 34 is formed in the upper portion of the stile 20,andan operating-lever 35 of U shape traverses said slot and is pivotedat its ends to the lower portions of the posts 24 25.

The end of the U-shaped frame formed by the operating-lever 35 ismovable vertically in the slot 34, and said slot is enlarged laterallyat its lower end to form seats for the end of the frame when the gate isclosed or entirely open. By means of the seats in the lower end of theslot 34 the lever is' retained against elevation by any movement oroscillation of the gate, thereby locking the gate against longitudinalmovement until such time as the lever is elevated in the desired manner.The lower ends of the connectingvrods 32 33 are pivotally connected tothe central portions of the opposite bars or arms of the lever 35.

Guide-posts 3G are set midway between the posts 24, 25, and l0, andguide-posts 37 37 are set midway between the posts 24, 25, and 11, allof which guide-posts are short and have journaled on their upper endsantifrictionrollers 3S, designed to engage the eXtreme outer faces ofthe bars 19 and guide and strengthen the gate in its longitudinalmovement.

In order to open the gate, it is necessary, if on foot, to elevate thelever 35 manually and then move the gate longitudinally. When it isdesired to open the gate While mounted,

the operator depresses one or the other of the outer ends of the levers30 3l, thus oseillatin g the levers on their fulcrums, elevating theconnecting-rods 3f 33, and elevating and carrying the lever 35 throughan arc, during which operation the cross-head or closed end of the lever35, engaged in the slot 3l, moves vertically in said slot and impels thegate in the desired direction until the said lever passes a verticalplane, after which the momentum attained in the initial operationcarries the gate into the position shown. Duringthe lon gitudinalmovement of the gate the rollers 1G 1G travel 011 the track 13, which,being formed of metal and of slight transverse dimension, offers butslight support for snow, sleet, or other obstruction to the travel ofthe wheel.

'lhere are provided, in addition to the construction heretofore set up,arms 50 5l, fixed to and extended in opposite directions from thoseportions of the lever 35 pivoted in the posts Q-.t 95. The arms 50 5lextend at right angles to the path of travelof the gate to suchdistances as will exceed the length ot' an ordinary vehicle and the teamattached thereto. The outer end portions of the arms 50 5l are providedwith miter-gears 52 53, which mesh with miter-gears 54 55, respectivelypivoted 0n vertical axes in boxes 56 57. Arms 58 59 are pivoted to theaxles of the gears 5l 55, and extend therefrom transversely of theroadway and across the line of travel of at least one wheel of anordinary vehicle. The arms 5S 59 are provided with sleeves CO, looselymounted thereon and revolublc relative thereto. rThe sleeves 60 areabout four incles in diameter and are placed from three to six inchesabove the surface of the ground. Owing to the location and size of thesleeves the wheels will not ride thereon but will push the samedownwardly and forwardly until the arms 5S 59 are at such oblique anglesto the roadway as that the wheels will pass the same. In the forwardmovement of the arms the sleeves are depressed into contact with theground and roll thereon, thus flexing the spring (il to such an extentas that said spring will throw the arms back when the wagon-wheel haspassed. Springs 6l are mounted in the boxes 56 57 and impinge againstthe under side of the arms 5S 59 and tend to maintain said arms innormal positions transversely of the roadway and in planes solnewhatelevated from the surface of the ground. A ratchettooth 62 is formed oneach of the arms 5S 59 and is designed for engagement at times withratchet-teeth on the gear-wheels 5i 55, but

said teeth normally are elevated above the wheels and are maintained atsuch elevation by the springs 6l.. An eye 63 is formed in theoperating-lever 35, and a curved bar (it is loosely mounted therein andconnected at its ends to a right-angled frame G5, loosely mounted onthose portions of the operatinglever connected to the arm 5l. Expansivecoil-springs G6 G7 are mounted on the curved bar (il and conlinedbetween the ends of said bar and the lever In the practical operation ofthe gate the triangular frame strikes the ground or a block providedtherefor, which results in a compression of one or the other of thesprings GU 67 and a consequent cushioning of the cessation of movementof the gate. The gate being closed, as a vehicle approaches one of thewheels of the vehicle engages the sleeves 60 on the adjacent bar 58 or59 and moves said bar laterally into the position shown by dotted lines.In the movement of the bar laterally it is also moved downwardly, thctooth thereon engages with the ratchet of the gear and rotates saidgear, which in turn rotates the gear meshing therewith and the armconnected thereto and throws the operating-lever and the gate thereoninto an openl position. lVhen the arm has been moved laterally asuliicient degree, the wheel passes and the spring connected to said armthrows the same back into the transverse position and out ot engagementwith the ratchet on the gearwheel. 'lhe further travel of the vehicleactuates the lever by engagement with the bar on the other side of thegate to restore said gate to a closed condition.

I claim as my invention- A sliding farm-gate, comprising a travelinggate having a vertical slot in its central portion, an operating-leverfulerumed adjacent to said gate and traversing said slot, arms formed onsaid operating-lever, intermeshing miter-gears connected with said arms,laterally-extendin g arms clutched to said gears and extending over theroadway, springs for normally retaining said arms in and returning saidarms to desired positions and sleeves on said arms for engagement byvehiclewheels, as set forth.

\VILLIS E. NEVTON.

lVitnesses:

M. CHAFEE, HARRISON NEWTON.

